Page 17 of Twisted Bonds

“Chitra, I need help setting up this tray.” One of the girls working with her that evening carried a tray with flowers. “Can I use these white flowers?”

Chitra smiled. “Yes, you can, but we need more colors. It’s Diwali, and everything has to be brighter and more cheerful this time of the year.”

She pointed to the flowers and garlands that the temple patrons had brought as offerings to God. “Bring me those flowers and the oil lamps.”

Even as she focused on the flower and the lamp arrangement, she couldn’t help but hear excited murmurs about a man in attendance who was rumored to be a prince.

Shaking her head with a smile, Chitra continued with the decoration, adjusting the flowers to make it a perfect arrangement. Just as she finished, she felt a familiar awareness.

She looked up from the tray.

A soft gasp escaped her, and her heart skipped a beat when her eyes met the sight in front of her. Mihir was dressed in a traditional outfit, and he looked stunningly handsome. The buzz around her picked up when he started to walk towards her. She heard the word prince and realized the people were referring to him.

They weren’t wrong about Mihir looking like a prince—a dashing one at that.

“Can I help?” he asked with a smile.

She felt a strange flutter in her stomach. Ignoring the awareness, she smiled at Mihir.

“Yes, we need as much help as we can! There are a lot of lamps to be lit this evening.”

With a smile, he came and knelt next to her. Then, he began lighting the lamps.

There were shrieks of young children as they played in the temple courtyard.

Chitra smiled, looking at them.

“You like children,” Mihir observed.

Chitra looked at him. “I love children. Don’t you? How many children do you want to have?”

She looked at his surprised expression and laughed.

“I know all of us who grew up at an orphanage dream of a family,” she said. “I’m sure you did too.”

He was silent for a moment before he smiled.

“How many children do you want?” he asked.

She let out a laugh. “When I was younger, I wanted four kids. But realistically, based on my other dreams of a house, a car, and some savings, I’ll settle for three children. You?”

“I want three children too,” he replied softly.

Something about the way he spoke made her heart flutter. She strangely imagined he was trying to tell her he wanted three children because she did.

Stop imagining things.

But she did see something flash in his eyes. “Chitra… I need to tell you something.”

Before he could finish, a little girl came running to Chitra.

“Chitra, you have to come now.” The little girl dragged her by her hand. “We want to burst the firecrackers.”

Chitra smiled. “You should wait until it’s time. Why don’t you have some Diwali sweets? I heard they are yummy.”

The little girl’s eyes lit up. “Yes, I want sweets.”

The girl ran towards the dining hall.

---